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Welcome back, my friends, to the "Battle" that never ends.
We're so glad you could attend. Come inside! Come inside!
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This is 'BATTLE OF THE BANDS' ('BOTB') where you listen to different recordings and vote for the one you like best. A new Battle gets posted on the 1st of each month and on the 7th, I place my own vote, tally 'em all up and announce the winner.
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Friend? Foe? Stranger? No matter, ALL are welcome. So pull up a chair, pour yourself 24 oz. of DOG BITE High Gravity Lager (or the poison of your choice) and turn it up to Eleven!
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[NOTE: Links to the first year of 'BOTB' (#1 - #24) can be found at the very bottom of this page.]

Saturday, January 21, 2017

RESULTS: BATTLE OF THE BANDS -- 2017, JAN. 15 (Or, THE TRAIN HAS ARRIVED)

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STMcC’s Vote On '2017, January 15th: Battle Of The Bands' (Or, 'Regina McCrary Versus William Dobbs') And The Final Tally:
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First of all, my genuine thanks as usual to EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU who took the time to listen and vote on this edition of 'Battle Of The Bands' (BOTB). Without you, this Battle would have ended in a 0 to 0 tie.

I mentioned HERE, how much trouble I had trying to find what I felt were two well-matched competitors for the Gospel song 'IF I GOT MY TICKET'.
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This was my 83rd BOTB installment and I'm not sure if I've EVER had one that seemed so closely matched. I think that at one point WILLIAM DOBBS had a two-vote lead over REGINA McCRARY, and that's the WIDEST the vote margin ever got throughout the contest. For the most part the voting on this Battle was like one for William, one for Regina, one for William, one for Regina, one for William, one for Regina... and so on, all the way to the Finish line. It was INCREDIBLE!

The majority of voters stated that they really enjoyed BOTH versions of the song and that it wasn't an easy decision to make. Only a couple of people seemed to feel that their vote was a slam-dunk for one artist over the other.

Considering that at one point I was about two minutes away from giving up on using this song altogether (I had even picked out a substitute song already) and considering that William Dobbs is a non-celebrity YouTuber who was going up against Bob Dylan's highly professional and excellent Gospel background singers, William came through magnificently in this contest.

As for my own vote... well...
When my Brother, Judge Al "Nappy" Bondigas, posted his vote, he left a comment that PERFECTLY captures my own views about this contest as well. So following is what Judge Al wrote, and it goes for me, too:

Both versions were so great and soulful that I feel bad that someone's gonna take second. I know, I know, there is no crying in baseball and no ties in Battle of the Bands. Hmmm... I slightly rule fer William Dobbs and his choir. Both versions were great, but the whole choir arrangement really moved me. Anyway, rulin' fer Dobbs and background. That's it. That's my rulin'!!!

I wholeheartedly concur with ALL OF THAT. Except for one thing... The Good Judge wrote, "There is ... no ties in Battle of the Bands". But in truth (as Tyrone said in the movie 'Hollywood Shuffle'), "That shit could really happen!"

Regina McCrary = 10 votes
William Dobbs = 10 votes


Alright, at this point I've lost track of how many times "I've kissed my sister" (i.e., ended up with a BOTB tie) but I think this one might be #12.

Anyway, as much as I normally dislike ties, this one doesn't bother me because BOTH artists performed this song so well that it would have been almost criminal to have seen either one of them have to lose the Battle. So, yes, I actually CELEBRATE this draw and commend Regina and William for making it so entertaining and exciting for me. Great BOTB installment, thanks to the contestants!

Incidentally, I want to earnestly urge you all to pay William a visit. He has a YouTube channel where he has uploaded a number of other classic songs that he's recorded for our enjoyment. Please go by and listen and give him a word or two of encouragement. William seems like a super-nice and humble man after God's own heart, and I hope you all will thank him for contributing to such an A-List and E-Ticket Battle Of The Bands installment.
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WILLIAM DOBBS YouTube channel: click HERE.
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My thanks to William Dobbs and my thanks again to all y'all. And I hope you'll return for my February 1st Battle Of The Bands installment on February 1st. (You see how that works?)

~ Stephen T. McCarthy
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15 comments:

  1. From the other side, a tie is like kissing your brother!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hmmm...
      I guess I'll just stick with what I got.

      But here's a thought:

      Perhaps your brother and my sister might hit it off.

      ~ D-FensDogG
      My new blog is @
      (Link:] Stephen T. McCarthy Reviews...

      Delete
  2. Hey, I had a tie this round too! Was a great battle you had here and I'm thrilled to have been introduced to William Dobbs. Thanks for including his YouTube channel here. I'll definitely be checking it out.

    Hope you're having a magnificent Sunday. It's gloriously windy here and my wind-chimes are singing loudly. Beautiful!

    Michele at Angels Bark

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    Replies
    1. Cool news, MICHELE. Although ties aren't the most satisfying BOTB outcomes, they still beat the heck out of blowouts.

      We got light snow and rain here. There's ONLY ONE cure for that: wine, and lots of it! Ha!

      ~ D-FensDogG
      Check out my new blog @
      (Link:] Stephen T. McCarthy Reviews...

      Delete
  3. I was hoping for a tie in my Battle as I liked both versions so much.

    In the case of yours though, as you know, for me it was Dobbs all the way.

    Funny about taste though. Just today at church I was talking to a 70 year old black sister (I had a hard time believing her age as I figured her for being in her fifties, but then when she told me she had 16 grandchildren and 13 great grandchildren I had to ask--or that is my wife asked), but anyway we got to talking about music and favorite kinds and I brought up Mahalia. This lady said she didn't much care for that style of gospel, but preferred Andre Crouch and another artist that now I can't recall since it was an artist with whom I was not familiar. I then mentioned the topic of Southern Gospel and she agreed with my assessment that it was more related to traditional country music.

    Not to harp on that issue, but my next BOTB will be dedicated to you.

    Anyway a tie means a pretty solid contest so you did have a good one here.

    By the way, it's chilly and rainy, rainy, rainy here in L.A. Never saw so much rain in this area, but considering the drought that's a good thing. Must be something to do with climate change.

    Arlee Bird
    Tossing It Out

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. >>... Not to harp on that issue, but...

      It was beyond the harping stage about 40,000 words ago. (You can be sure of one thing though: I will never ever again toss off a casual joke about your BOTB voting habits. THAT LESSON I have indeed learned.)

      ~ D-FensDogG
      Check out my new blog @
      (Link:] Stephen T. McCarthy Reviews...

      Delete
  4. It is nice when there is a tie because that means both versions are great. I still think it is cool that William got I. Touch with you and I hope he likes this outcome

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    1. BIRGIT ~
      William was thrilled with the whole thing. Following are some post-Battle comments that he left for me and my response to him here:

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gSfhjXi1dOg

      WILLIAM DOBBS:
      I just went to the link and read your summary of how the competition went and was very moved and touched by what you said. I praise God for all of it. Congrats to Regina McCrary as well and for all of the support and votes she received during this battle as well.

      This is amazing, that we were both neck in neck almost the entire time. I honestly felt Regina would win because of her being a professional singer and musician opposite me being a non-celebrity person who likes to do this as a hobby and for the love of it. It is encouraging that we both ended up winners in this, and I know it was hard to choose one over the other.

      I am happy we both came out as winners in this and that more people will get to listen to her recordings as well as mine.

      An additional note about the recording: the background vocal parts are all sung by me. I serve as the "choir" in the recording, as well as me singing the lead parts within the song. I really loved how the recording turned out and I am happy you enjoyed it. Big ups to Mr. Stacey V. Gibbs for a wonderful arrangement that I was humbled and honored to cover.

      I hope I am not rambling but it's just the outpouring of my heart concerning how humbly grateful I am to be even considered for an opportunity like this... for someone who feels that I don't measure up to anyone else out there who have far greater singing abilities than I possess and who feels that part of me gets ignored or looked over or gets devoid of recognition or praise... until you reached out to me and showed me otherwise.

      Again, God bless you mightily and greatly for including me in this contest and letting me know that it went well for my competitor and me, as well as reassuring me that my musical gifts, abilities, and talents mean something to you and everyone else who has listened to it. Praise be to God for everything!

      Thank you also for putting the link to my YT channel on your blog so that your followers will find it easier. That really means a lot.

      STEPHEN T. McCARTHY:
      WOW! I had meant to ask you about who the choir behind you was -- where had you found them? Had no idea it was ALL YOU! That's amazing, William! I will be sure to mention that in the comment section of my blog.

      Brother, keep it up, because you are REALLY GOOD. God has DEFINITELY blessed you with musical talent. I'd love to see you make it big some day so you can glorify God and Christ to a wider audience. I'm really impressed -- even more than I already was, knowing now that you do ALL of the singing on ALL of your recordings. That's tremendous
      ~D-FensDogG

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    2. That'a amazing! Kudos to William.

      Delete
  5. A tie may not be the best outcome, but it's a sign of a good battle and way better than a blowout! (I've had 4 in a row of those.) Congrats on a great match up. It's been raining here for a week. Getting desperate for some sun!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. DEBBIE ~
      Four blowouts in a row is a bummer. I've had a couple of them in a row before (and I expect my next two will also be blowouts) but four straight can kind of sap the fun out of it, I would imagine.

      I have an idea: Perhaps you should try a "Twisted BOTB" installment next. Maybe put the song '(YOU'RE) HAVING MY BABY' by Paul Anka up against 'WHO KILLED BAMBI?' by the Sex Pistols.

      Everybody will hate your Battle but at least both performers will likely get a fairly equal number of (disgusted) votes.

      ~ D-FensDogG
      Check out my new blog @
      (Link:] Stephen T. McCarthy Reviews...

      Delete
  6. William's comment kind if makes it all worthwhile, eh? At least it does for me!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah, it was a heartwarming comment.

      ~ D-FensDogG
      My new blog is @
      (Link:] Stephen T. McCarthy Reviews...

      Delete
  7. First time I can remember you being enthused about a tie!

    Great outcome:)

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    Replies
    1. ROBIN ~
      I can actually remember another tie I had that I was enthused about...

      The song was 'WALKING THE DOG' and the artists were AEROSMITH and ROGER DALTREY. That one ended in a tie, and it was also one of the very hardest vote decisions I ever had to make in the history of BOTB.

      That Battle was so incredibly close in my own mind that I was happy it ended in a draw. I thought that was really the fairest outcome for both competitors.

      Now, girlfriend, when you gonna start visiting me at my new blog @
      (Link:] Stephen T. McCarthy Reviews...?

      Delete

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